On Monday I will probably get the go-ahead to purchase a laptop for my use as treasurer of the PTO at the kids' school. My requirements are few and simple, my budget is reasonable ($1000 max, although being treasurer it's not my goal to spend it all.....)
I need to run Quickbooks 2003 Pro on it. It says it works on 98, 2000, Me and XP.
I need Excel and Word or similar. I need a CD writer, a USB port and internet capability. Somewhere to plug a real mouse in would be nice, as would a decently sized and ergonomic keyboard. It needs to be pretty compact and lightweight.
As you see, a mid-range washing machine could probably fulfil my computing needs, and many computers satisfy the demand and come within my budget. So now the challenge is to pick one that will be reliable, need minimal maintenance and be long-lived. Purchasing an extended warranty is also an option. A walk-in store rather than internet purchase might be worth a few extra bucks, but not many. We are not subject to sales tax, so that is not an issue. And I would still like to spend the minimum possible. Less $ on computer means more $ for kids. )
So what should I buy and where? Any (relevant) experience/opinions/advice appreciated -this market's too big for me to research alone! Thanks for your help....
p.s. info about special offers currently available also appreciated
Dell has deals all the time and tend to have very good laptops, you're needs are pretty limited (altough I don't like them myself) a basic celeron Lappy with 512mb DDR ram should suffice ..... if you don't want celeron a low end P4 would be as good
Higher end lappys are for the power users ...I don't think thats what you're needs are
Ray
hmmm.... what's the best way to buy Dell? they keep sending us spam (this computer is Dell) which I ignore as a policy. Shoud I start to pay attention?
...and yes, my needs are basic. the idea is that this laptop will be passed from treasurer to treasurer and that handover should be as pain-free as possible. There should be no personal storage on it.
(Some of) The reasons for getting said laptop are as follows
1) no need to upgrade software to fit computer of new treasurer when job is passed on
2) Treasurer does not need to have regular access to a computer at home/work
3) Treasurer can work on the run
4) Treasurer can take laptop to school and produce instant reports and even print urgent checks etc.
5) Treasurer can attend meetings and produce figures/reports as required, rather than having to anticipate questions and fail miserably.
6) Secretary can use laptop to take minutes at meetings -transcription a thing of the past
7) and many more
but basically needs are simple because complexity is less transferable. Robustness and guarantees are desirable because they are transferable.
hmmm.... what's the best way to buy Dell? they keep sending us spam (this computer is Dell) which I ignore as a policy. Shoud I start to pay attention?
Pay attention sometimes they have great deals in Canada (and I am sure in the US) they often have 10 days of Dell Deals which have VERY good prices for 1 day only on select items (and limited quantities) I picked up a 19inch LCD monitor for 299 Cdn ..incl free shipping last time round (which was about $150 dollars less then the regular price)
I have always ordered online ..no problems
When we are looking for a computer we use Best Buy and online Dell and HP. we go between them all, put in the specs we want and see which one comes out cheapest. More often than not recently HP has come out cheaper than Dell because they have had free shipping at the times we have been looking. However, Best Buy came out cheapest with the Sony when hubby was looking for a laptop. Mine is HP.
All the computers we have bought so far have been reliable and done/still doing the job we bought them for.
You know, have you thought about going to your local uni/college/high school and seeing if they are planning on getting rid of any of their older computers? The college I work at do this periodically and sell them off to the staff and students for $75 each. They are pentium IIIs and run Windows XP professional, however when they sell them they take off XP and put on 95 because of licensing issues. So far, I haven't seen them sell off any laptops but with newer technology coming out and knowing how our schools here are more into laptops than desktops, you may find that a call to any of the uni/college/high schools in your area and telling them the reason for needing a laptop, you may get one that is perfect for your needs at a discount price. Certainly could be worth looking into. Then all you would have to pay for is the license for XP )
Another option would be to get a factory refurbished. Dell has many on their outlet and come with full Dell warranty, where as HP, Gateway etc only give minimum warranties i.e. 30/90 days.
I have had my refurbished dell desktop for 3 years without a single problem.
Just a thought.
I purchase all my computer stuff from the HP Shopping website. They have a much easier site than Dell and IBM. I really like the easy way to customize what you want. They also have special deals every day where there will be rebates or free upgrades.
Assuming that you go with a low end Pentium instead of a Celeron.. then the min spec currently is 1.6Ghz, 256Mb memory with a 14" screen. You can pick one of these up for around $800 that comes with a CR write. 512Mb is always my recommendation for memory. Most people prefer a 15" screen, but you can always hook it up to an external 17" monitor.
HP also provides the Compaq brand. I just spec'd one up (with 512memory) for $800.
From the HP brand, the ze2000t comes with 1.6Mhz processor and a 15" screen. With 512 memory and a cd writer, it comes to $850.
The above does not include any virus software, office or extended warrenty.
I recently ordered the ze2000t laptop from HP for my MIL.
You know, have you thought about going to your local uni/college/high school and seeing if they are planning on getting rid of any of their older computers? The college I work at do this periodically and sell them off to the staff and students for $75 each....
yup, and no thanks. been there done that.....
I find anything less than 512 MB RAM to be a bit sluggish once you get going with it. The first few weeks you may not notice but you will do within a month or so running Windows XP.
I find anything less than 512 MB RAM to be a bit sluggish once you get going with it. The first few weeks you may not notice but you will do within a month or so running Windows XP.
Totally agree.. My configured computers always come with 1G of memory.. it is better to spend more on memory than it is to increase the processor above 1.6mhz. Base install of XP will run ok, but as you said, over time it really slows down.
Alot of talk about CPU's here without stating the for and against on the P4, Celeron, Centrino (Pentium M), AMD Turion, AMD Athlon64 and Sempron that you can get in laptops. Its a big decider in who makes it and the size of the system.
Starting with Intel the P4 is a desktop chip and will increse the size of a laptop being as it's supposed to be in a desktop PC and when used in a laptop is a desktop replacement notebook. This is the same for the AMD Athlon chips also althou the AMD 64 has 64bit compability and I dont beleive the Intel dual core 64bit is available in a laptop yet thou I maybe wrong.
Stay away from the Celeron and the Sempron as they are the bucket CPU's for any type of system. Turion is the new AMD mobile chip to compete with the Centrino for the smaller more mobile notebooks and here is your choice for power over size between the desktop and mobile chips. You can get a faster bigger notebook for the price or a smaller, but still fast enough for your needs mobile chipset.
Dont buy anything with Compaq on lid, dell slipped badly this year in customer support and service and it costs big for home service on a dell. Gateway is in trouble and Sony is over priced. Toshiba consistantly make some of the best laptops today typicaly thou at the top end.
Happy shopping 8)
Thank you all for your help. )
Dont buy anything with Compaq on lid, dell slipped badly this year in customer support and service and it costs big for home service on a dell.
What has Compaq got to do with Dell? I agree with your comment on Dell, but Compaq is now owned by HP who consistantly deliver good computers and decent service. Their current 2-year express repair service plan is pretty good for the price.